Thunder Bolts: Utah Jazz 96, Oklahoma City Thunder 87

By Meredith Lakis

Sports Blogger

@meredithlakis9

Team chemistry

(Keith Allison, Flickr)

The Utah Jazz played better as a team with 22 assists versus the Thunder’s 15. Russell Westbrook had nine assists while scoring only six points and was far from reaching his usual triple-double. Carmelo Anthony and Paul George George both contributed with two assists, playing to score.

New additions

George and Anthony scored a combined 48 points for the Thunder. They shot 42 percent and 46 percent from the field. Despite the big numbers they put up, Westbrook and the rest of the bench could not manage to score in the double digits.

Jazz lead most of the game

The Oklahoma City Thunder could not handle the defensive pressure the Jazz put forth. The Jazz had 11 steals and four blocks, causing a disruption in OKC’s offensive flow. Utah had the biggest lead of the game with 20 points, and the Thunder could only pull ahead by 6. There were 3 lead changes throughout the game and an impressive 27-7 run by the Jazz.